10 Best Parks in Vancouver

Stanley Park is a gigantic urban park offering more space than Central Park in New York split between rainforest, tended green space, thick tree groves, and an aquarium. The park has a legacy stretching back to the 1800s and comprises more than 1,000 acres of space. It's almost completely surrounded by water and incorporates trails for jogging, hiking, biking, and in-line skating around the perimeter. You can visit white-sand beaches and see totem poles. You can also head for the huge, world-class Vancouver Aquarium, which is right on the park grounds.

Stanley Park is among the largest and most beloved parks in Vancouver. It's just a 5-minute drive north of the center of downtown.

Queen Elizabeth Park offers 130 acres of gorgeous forested green space with panoramic vistas of the North Shore Mountains, manicured lawns, and elegantly tended gardens. This park is among the highest viewpoints in Vancouver, and whether you're here for a photo op that will be a highlight of your social media profile or you want to walk through the colorful and sweet-scented flowers, you'll find a wonderful, peaceful, and romantic time here.

While you're in the park, don't forget to visit the on-site Bloedel Conservatory with its collections of exotic plants and birds. You can also grab a bite at the Seasons in the Park Restaurant. It's all just an easy 13-minute jaunt south from downtown.

John Hendry Park is known to locals as Trout Lake Park and offers 67 acres of parkland with a lake that's ideal for fishing, swimming, ice skating, and other fun. In the summer months, lifeguards are on duty to keep everyone safe, and the entire park is focused on the lake and its beaches. In the winter, if the lake freezes solid enough, it's used as an outdoor skating rink. It's rare that conditions are right for this, but when they are it's a treasure of the region.

The park is an excellent example of site reclamation, built on the site of a former peat bog. It's located just a 15-minute drive southeast of downtown.

Harbour Green Park is a park along Coal Harbour offering spectacular water features, a seemingly endless stretch of waterfront green space, and gorgeous views. Here you can walk along the shores of the harbor, watch floatplanes take off and land, enjoy some romantic moments with your beloved, or catch a selfie at the water feature that doubles as a spray park in the summer. This park in the heart of downtown allows you to put the city to your back, breathe the fresh sea air, and escape from the hustle and bustle for a little while.

If you're hungry, the park has its own on-site bistro for light fare. You can grab a bite right on the shores.

Pacific Spirit Regional Park offers over 2,000 acres of evergreen forest populated by hundreds of Douglas firs and boasting miles of recreational trails. You can hike, bike, jog, or ride horses along 22 miles of trail in this park, a lot of it running along the waterfront of the Georgia Straight. It's on the grounds of the University of British Columbia at the far west of the city and is known as a gem of the regional park system. It's also directly connected to a clothing-optional beach, if that's your thing.

This is a great place to get away from the city crowds and back to nature. It's only 20 minutes west of downtown.

Guelph Park, locally known as Dude Chilling Park, is a small park offering public art installations and a small urban space where you can get away for a little while. It's neither the largest park nor the greenest in town but is famed for its Reclining Figure statue that was added in 1991. The park's nickname is the result of a prank in 2012, when someone stole the park's official sign and replaced it with one carrying the name "Dude Chilling Park". The sign has been replaced, but the nickname stuck.

Head to this park in East Van just 10 minutes south of downtown for a quick selfie. It's among the most talked-about parks in Vancouver.

Vanier Park offers a vast green space and recreational facilities while being home to several popular local museums and many outdoor events. While you're here, you can visit the Museum of Vancouver, the Vancouver Maritime Museum, the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre, and the Vancouver Archives. Every summer it's the home of the Children's Festival and the Bard on the Beach festival. If you're looking for a local park where there's always something going on, Vanier Park is it.

The park is flat and wheelchair accessible. All attractions are within easy walking distance of each other. It's only a 10-minute drive southwest of downtown.

VanDusen Botanical Garden offers 55 acres of elegant, colorful flowers and plants in an exclusive, upscale neighborhood just 15 minutes south of downtown. Here you can see more than 7,500 trees and plants from 7 geographic regions across the world. The garden also incorporates features like an Elizabethan maze, a meditation garden, and bubbling brooks that run throughout the park. You can walk the trails yourself or take a guided tour. When you get hungry, you can head for one of two on-site eateries: a casual alfresco spot or an upscale indoor restaurant.

Every December, this park hosts the Festival of Lights all month. This holiday lights display is a major attraction in the region.

The Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden is set in the historic Chinatown neighborhood and offers a replica of a classic Ming Dynasty scholars' garden, the first outside of China. It was built by 53 master craftsmen from China, and everything except for native plants was shipped in from China. You'll see pagodas, limestone rocks quarried from Lake Tai, authentic roof tiles, and serene koi ponds. A guided tour showcases the local Chinese community and the park's history, or you can just pull up a bench and relax for a while.

Here you can take enchanting photos of the elegant surroundings or just enjoy the koi swimming around in their ponds. It's just 5 minutes east of central downtown.

Nitobe Memorial Garden offers a traditional Japanese garden spanning 2.5 acres on the University of British Columbia campus with traditional ceremonies and meditative settings. If you want a snack while you're here, a traditional tea house on-site allows you to enjoy some light fare in this serene area. The last Saturday of each month from May through September sees a traditional tea ceremony take place that ends with visitors getting a steaming bowl of delicious matcha tea.

After you enjoy your tea, take some time to stroll across the wooden footbridges, across manicured lawns, and among water features to relax and recharge. It's only 18 minutes west of downtown.